To Sin is Human
by Mandy
Summary: April is upset over an argument with Casey and Don happens to be there to comfort her.


Wow, I've really been in a writing mood lately. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. I really have no idea if people really like my fics or not shrugs. And yet I can't stop writing. I took a short break from Higher Education for this little one-shot. Although I love the April/Don coupling, I can't help but think it's wrong. This is set in the new cartoon universe.

Edit as of 4/19/07: Thanks to GW's nice review (thanks GW!); I've added in more stuff in hopes of improving this fic. I hope you enjoy the new and improved version  (Is it improved ?)

To Sin is Human

April had been sitting around in her dark, cold apartment, crying. She and Casey had just had a huge fight. She had only been worried about him when she had nagged him a little too much and he blew up at her, threatening to break their engagement. The doorbell interrupted her thoughts and she wondered who it could be at a bad time like this. So she brushed away some of her tears and opened the door. It was Don.

"Hey, April." Don looked at April. He could tell that she had been crying. Her eyes were all puffed up and her face was pale. April stood there pleasantly surprised to see a good friend but also confused. Why was he here?

"What's wrong?" Don asked softly. April quietly ushered him in and softly shut the door behind him.

"Casey and I got into a fight. He just stormed out a few minutes ago, angry at me." April's lips trembled; the fight was playing through her mind all over again. Don placed a hand on April's shoulder.

"I'm sorry." April shivered and began sobbing. Don wrapped an arm around and embraced her, allowing her to cry on his shoulder. They stood like that together for a few minutes. Finally April pulled away and looked at directly into Don's brown eyes. She sniffled and gave him a small smile.

"Thanks, Don. You were here just when I needed you. Wait a minute, why are you here?" Don chuckled.

"Don't you remember? You wanted me to come over and take a look at the water heater since it's been acting up again." April had this look on her face like she had just remembered something important.

"Oh, that's right. I forgot with everything going on."

"Well, it's understandable."

"It was all my fault. I started yelling at him about his vigilante ways. I get so worried about him sometimes." April sighed as she sat on the couch. Don took April's lead and sat in the chair nearby.

"It's okay for you to worry. What Casey does is dangerous."

"I know that he enjoys his night hobby and he has been involved in it before I even met him but still I hate it." Don nodded, just listening. "Part of me is just mad at myself because not only am I worried but I'm also thinking its time for him to quit. We're engaged and I think it's time that he settled down. I know this sounds cheesy but I want to build a family with him." Don smiled.

"Of course you do April, there's nothing wrong with that. Maybe he knows he needs to quit but he's in denial; he doesn't want to."

"Yeah I guess you're right. Thanks Don, you're always there for me. I'll be alright now so you can go ahead and fix the water heater and I'll go make some spaghetti for you." Don's face lit up.

"Yum, I can't wait." Don and April hugged before Don descended down to the basement.

As April was fixing dinner, she noticed the wine bottle that she had been saving for a special occasion.

"Ah, what the hell...tonight is as good a night as any to drink it up." April told herself.

Once April had finished cooking the noodles and the meat sauce, Don showed up just in time for supper.

"Okay, April, it looks like you can have a hot shower tonight." April looked Don from head to toe. Despite the fact that he was a giant, mutated turtle, he was definitely good looking. April mused that whoever ended up with him would be one lucky gal.

They sat together at the table and April offered Don some wine. Don usually was not one to drink but one drink wouldn't hurt. April and Don had settled into a comfortable silence, enjoying each other's company.

"So what was wrong with the water heater anyways?"

"Oh, there was a lot of sediment buildup in the tank and the pipes that made it difficult for the water to heat up."

"Was it a very hard problem to fix?" April asked curious about how the water heater worked.

"No, I just needed to drain and flush it. It might be a good idea to drain it about every six months so it doesn't buildup again."

"I see. Thank you for coming over and taking care of that. I can finally smell fresh again. It's a good thing I'm sitting all the way across of the table from you, otherwise, you'd have to suffer my horrible body odor." Don laughed.

"No, April, you don't smell rancid, in fact, you smell rather nice." April giggled.

"That's so sweet of you to say, even if you're just being cordial." Don looked sincerely into April's eyes.

"I meant what I said, so don't worry about it." April smiled as she took another sip of wine; her glass was almost empty.

"Well you don't smell bad either, for someone who lives in a sewer." April joked which made Don laugh.

"Mmm…this is really good." Don commented on April's cooking. His spaghetti was quickly disappearing.

"Why thank you Don. Here would you like some more wine?" Well he felt warm and good so sure why not. One more glass wasn't going to kill him. She poured him and herself some more wine and her facial expression changed to that of a more serious one.

"Some days Casey is just so insensitive and pig headed and…damn I lost my train of thought. There are so many things about him that annoy me. Stupid men." Don looked a little insulted from across the table.

"Um…" April started waving her arms away as if trying to get rid of the last comment.

"I'm sorry, Don, I didn't mean you. You're sweet, sensitive, smart, and you're not bad looking at all." Don could feel his face heat up with embarrassment a little bit too easily. "Why didn't I end up with you" April said softly to herself.

"What?" Don asked, not knowing what April had just uttered.

"Um..it's nothing." April blushed realizing she was spouting out nonsense that she wasn't even sure was the truth.

"Thank you for supper; it was really good." Don said trying to lighten the mood.

"You're welcome Don. I'm glad you liked it. Did you want any dessert? I have apple pie."

"Yes, please." April got up from her spot at the table and dug in the fridge for the pie she had baked earlier that day and pulled it out.

"Did you want it a la mode?" asked April.

"Even better." Don grinned. April peaked into the freezer and pulled out a gallon bucket of vanilla ice cream. She then went spelunking through her assortment of utensils and finally came across her pie spatula. She carefully freed two slices from the pie.

"How many scoops?" She asked as she went back to the drawer wondering how she could have forgotten that she needed an ice cream scoop as well.

"How about two scoops." April managed to scoop up some ice cream even though it was giving her a hard time in its frozen state.

"Here you go." April said as she placed the plate down in front of him.

"Thank you, April." Don took a bite and savored the taste in his mouth. "This is really good."

"Thanks, Don." April said as she placed the pie and ice cream back in their respective spots. The ice cream scoop and the pie spatula were tossed into the sink. She placed her own plate on the table and while she was up poured herself some more wine to go with the pie.

"Here would you like some more wine?" Don felt okay so he figured another glass would be fine.

"Sure." April poured more wine into his glass, droplets of it splashed onto the tablecloth. Don didn't notice or really care at this point. The pie had been eaten and the events of the night had become increasingly fuzzy; eventually the wine had run out and April had switched to drinking scotch. Don didn't really care how much he had to drink anymore; he felt coherent so he continued to drink with her and everything was fine until he got up from his place at the table. The room spun a little bit and he finally realized he was drunk. April started laughing for no apparent reason and the two stumbled over to the couch.

"You know, you're really cute when you're drunk." April commented on Don's debilitated state.

"I'm always cute." Don smirked.

"Yes, you are." April smiled and ran a hand along his carapace. Alarm bells rang off in Don's head but the alcohol and hormones mixed together told him it felt good...really good. Then before he knew it, she had her mouth to his. Her tongue played with his and Don couldn't help but to kiss her back. His brain kept telling him to stop and that this was all wrong but he couldn't bring himself to terminate the kiss. He had always had a crush on April, even if it was juvenile but a crush, nonetheless. He had dreamed of this moment but not very seriously. Now that it was real and happening, part of him wondered if it was a dream.

April had gotten up to get herself more scotch and a glass was shoved into his hands.

"Here, drink up, you look nervous." Don was nervous. "I think it's cute though." Don wondered how many times April had called him cute now. Usually he was pretty good at keeping track of those sorts of things. He glanced over at the woman he had considered a very good friend. There was no doubt about it; she was hot. Her hair was a bit tussled and seeing a smile on her face really lit up the room. Before he knew it those plush lips were up against his again; it went downhill from there.

Morning came and Don awoke, in April's bed. The sun was bright and made his head hurt. He squinted his eyes, trying to figure out how he had ended up in her bed. He glanced over and there was April, sleeping. Her skin looked so soft and pure and…then Don realized she was naked. The memories of their passionate night came back to him. What had he done? April was engaged to Casey.

April mumbled in her sleep and turned toward Don, laying a hand on his carapace.

"Casey...I love you…" She mumbled still sleeping.

"Shit." That's all Don could think of at that very moment. He had screwed up, big time. He wondered if April would hate him. So he squirmed his way out of her arms and tried to exit the room when April noticed he was gone.

"Casey, where are you going?" She was still asleep. Don left the room, trying to get his bearings straight. Don was feeling pretty sick at this point and rushed off to the bathroom. Not only was the hangover giving him nausea, the feeling that he had done something sinful crept into his conscience. He emptied all of the contents of his stomach and remained seated by the toilet, still feeling rather queasy. There was a bitter, acetic taste in the back of his throat. He finally found the ambition to get himself up from the floor. When he finally came out of the bathroom, there was April. She had this look on her face that he couldn't comprehend.

"April..." Don began but couldn't find any words to say.

"It's not your fault Don, I'm the adult here; I was the one that came on to you. I'm so sorry" April said, her voice was shaky.

"I'm sorry too April." Don sighed. April felt extremely guilty. Not only had she cheated on Casey, she took advantage of a minor who happened to be a very good friend and probably deeply hurt him. Don awkwardly left and April didn't do anything to stop him.

Weeks had passed; April and Casey had made up and the fight they had seemed ages ago. Casey had finally decided to give up his hobby, meaning April and him could get married and start a family. Don and April had pretty much avoided each other since that night.

For Don, that night was bittersweet. He hated to see Casey and April together despite deep down he knew it was right. He had experienced something that his brothers never had and he would always treasure it but he felt empty. He had lost April in the process.

It had been months since the two of them spoke besides the usual polite talk so as not to raise any uncertainties among his brothers or Casey. April and Casey had finally gotten married and after a year, Don and April had found themselves alone. The water heater decided to break and so Don had to come over and fix it once again. April knew she had to specifically request him to fix it, so as not to raise any suspicions from what had happened that one sinful night.

"Hi, April." Don attempted to sound civil.

"Thank you for coming over."

"No problem." That's all they would say to each other, as Don went downstairs to do his repairs. Once he was finished, he was ready to escape as soon as possible.

"Well it works now, goodnight."

"What's wrong with it this time?" April asked, hoping to stall for time so she could get up the courage to talk to him about what had happened between them.

"The heating elements were broken, so I tested them and had to replace a few."

"I see, thanks Don."

"You're welcome." Don said and turned around ready retreat back to the safety of the sewers. April knew that if she didn't get her chance now, who knew when she would have a moment alone with him.

"Don, wait. We need to talk." Don sighed and his shoulders slumped, his back was to her. He was afraid of this.

"Okay." April gestured to the couch and he reluctantly sat down beside her.

"I'm so sorry, for what I did to you Don. I wish I could turn back time and erase everything I did that night." Don just sat there, dreading every moment of the conversation. "I was drunk, upset, and you were just…I don't know...there." Don blinked and drew his attention to her.

"So, I was just some convenient person for you to screw around with because you had way too much to drink and your boyfriend and you had a fight? So you used me; I'm nothing special to you." Don's voice began to falter, even after a year, it still hurt.

"I know that no matter what I do, there is nothing I can do to make it up to you." Don shook his head.

"Just stop wasting you sympathy on me. I get it. You regret being with me because I'm this...this freak." Don looked at his hands, repulsed at the green tint of skin he saw before him. He slowly got up from the couch.

"No, Don, it's not like that. Look, you're a good guy and there are a lot of likeable qualities about you but you're too young for me and it was wrong of me to take advantage of you like that. But...I'm in love with Casey and not you. That's doesn't mean I don't love you as a friend though and that's why this hurts so much." Don seated himself; the pain was too much for him.

"So…you never told Casey about our night together...is that right?"

"I wanted to, many times but if I tell him, it would break his heart and besides after he came back and apologized, things got better."

"So you didn't want to ruin you happiness, how selfish of you." Don got up and walked towards the door.

"Don! Don!" April kept calling out to him but he just ignored her.

April sat alone in the apartment, realizing that one particular night had destroyed everything she had built. Casey had come home later to find April in despair.

"What's wrong babe?" April sighed sadly; she knew she had to tell him.

"There's something I need to tell you." April was shaking and tears were flowing freely from her face.

"What is it?" Casey sat down by April and wrapped an arm around her should, pulling her close to him.

"I cheated on you, a year ago, about four months before we got married." April sniffled. Casey had hit a brick wall, everything hurt.

"Who was it?"

"Don..." Casey swelled up with anger, ready to kick some ass, anything to make the pain go away. April tugged on Casey's wrist.

"Please don't kill him. It's not his fault. I'm the one that seduced him. I was really upset and I latched on to him." Casey stood there, frozen. He had seen the chemistry between the two but had thought nothing of it. After all, Don was still just a teenager. It was easy to forget with how much the four brothers had been through. He sunk back down on the couch with his hands over his face. A long, uncomfortable silence passed between the two. He finally let out a long, agonizing breath.

"I can forgive you but it'll take time. I know I can be a real jerk sometimes and I'm sorry. I just want to put this behind us now and move on."

"I'm sorry, I should have told you a long time ago but I was so afraid of losing you." Casey looked into her eyes and smiled painfully back at her.

"It would be hard for me to do too, I know but I'm glad you told me." Slowly April and Casey had rebuilt all that they had lost. Their relationship was not perfect by any means but it wasn't completely destroyed either. The pain still lingered in Don's heart but pushed it all away. He had become colder and isolated himself more and more over the next couple of months.

April finally found the courage to speak to him once more and had totally surprised him when she entered his lab one day.

"Look, I know you're still mad at me but please just hear me out." Don sat quietly, still with his back to her.

"I told Casey, he knows now and despite that, he's willing to forgive me. I just wish you could forgive me." Don sighed.

"April, I feel so stupid. I knew all along that you didn't love me and yet I went through with it. I knew that it wasn't going to last and yet I feel so horrible. Why?"

"It's because you're still young and confused. I introduced you to it at too young of an age and without love. The reason why you feel so empty is because what we did was only for fulfilling our physical but not mental needs." Don nodded sadly.

"I see." That's all he could say.

"I just wish things between us could go back to normal."

"Me too." Don replied softly. "Even if I am a minor and I was taken advantage of, aren't I allowed to take some of the blame too? I knew what I was doing was wrong and yet I did it anyways. In the end, I wanted to and I don't think I regret it." Don turned and looked at April from across the room. Then he got up and they embraced. Things would never be the same but they weren't all that bad either.

The End

And that's why Don and April don't belong together! Hehe. Really I do think they go well together but the whole age thing just bothers me. Of course I have no idea how old the turtles are in the series now…hehe. Besides at my age, I just don't find 15 year olds as boyfriend material even if I do find the turtles to be hot...hehe. And then some fics make Casey out to be a complete jerk or kill him off so April and Don can be together. Anyways, don't take this fic too seriously or even my comments. It was just an idea I had in my head while listening to the Full Metal Panic soundtrack. It just made me think of some dark, sinful secret or something. Oh well shrugs


End file.
